{"id":237299,"date":"2026-07-13T14:52:15","date_gmt":"2026-07-14T00:52:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=237299"},"modified":"2026-07-17T08:19:46","modified_gmt":"2026-07-17T18:19:46","slug":"new-law-strengthens-hawaii-promise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2026\/07\/13\/new-law-strengthens-hawaii-promise\/","title":{"rendered":"Investing in student success: New law strengthens Â鶹´«Ã½ Promise Program"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
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UH<\/abbr> President Wendy Hensel, Gov. Josh Green, Kapiʻolani<\/span> CC<\/abbr> student Kanako Horner.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In a major step toward expanding educational access and affordability, Gov. Josh Green signed into law HB<\/abbr> 2338 CD<\/abbr>1 as Act 235, providing critical updates to the University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Community Colleges\u2019 Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Promise Program<\/a>. The new law removes the program’s “last-dollar” restriction, allowing students to keep more of their additional scholarship resources while the state continues to cover up to 95% of tuition. As a result, students can use federal Pell Grants and private scholarships to help pay for essential living expenses and basic needs costs such as housing, food, transportation and other education-related costs.<\/p>\n[vc_video link=”https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/shorts\/gFWFcXlSf_c” el_aspect=”916″ align=”right” el_id=”wrap-video-right”]\n

The program’s impact is reflected in the experiences of students such as Kapiʻolani<\/span> CC<\/abbr> student Kanako Horner. “The Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Promise Program has lifted the majority of the financial burden associated with my education, allowing me the opportunity to explore my career goals and further my education.”<\/p>\n

While Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Promise is one of 38 statewide Promise programs nationwide, it was previously the only one that required outside grants and scholarships to be deducted from a student’s state award.<\/p>\n

“This legislation is a vital change that will directly support more residents across our islands,” said Lui Hokoana, interim vice president for the UH<\/abbr> Community Colleges. “By restructuring the award to maximize a student’s total financial aid, they can now use additional scholarship resources for essential costs like housing, food and transportation—making a college education more affordable for local families.”<\/p>\n

Act 235 builds upon the Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Promise Program’s proven track record of helping local residents pursue higher education despite Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> high cost of living.<\/p>\n

Proven impact and academic excellence<\/h3>\n

In academic year 2024–25, the Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Promise Program demonstrated its impact:<\/p>\n

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  • Distributed $5.69 million to 1,941 recipients, with an average award of $2,933.<\/li>\n
  • Served the 22% of recipients who demonstrated financial need but did not qualify for federal Pell Grants.<\/li>\n
  • Recipients earned more credits on average (17.9 vs. 13.0) and maintained higher GPA<\/abbr>s (2.89 vs. 2.73) than their non-recipient peers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Long-term outcomes<\/h3>\n
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    Rep. Terez Amato, Rep. Andrew Takuya Garrett, Kapiʻolani<\/span> CC<\/abbr> student Kanako Horner, Gov. Josh Green, UH<\/abbr> President Wendy Hensel, Sen. Donna Mercado Kim, Sen. Samantha DeCorte<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    Since 2017, the Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Promise Program has served 11,921 recipients, achieving a 70% overall success rate\u2014defined as earning a degree or certificate, transferring to a four-year institution or remaining actively enrolled. Just 30% of recipients have stopped out, meaning they are no longer enrolled and have not yet completed a credential, a rate well below the national average of 45%.<\/p>\n

    Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> is strengthening one of its most effective college affordability initiatives, ensuring the Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Promise Program can help even more residents complete their education while supporting the state’s workforce and economic future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Removing financial barriers helps residents cover vital living costs while learning.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":237311,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25,12],"tags":[678,61,1216,62,63,64,65,71,60,947,56,66],"class_list":["post-237299","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academic-news","category-video","tag-financial-aid","tag-hawaii-community-college","tag-hawaii-promise","tag-honolulu-community-college","tag-kapiolani-community-college","tag-kauai-community-college","tag-leeward-community-college","tag-uh-community-colleges","tag-maui-college","tag-uh-system","tag-video-2","tag-windward-community-college","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t